Finally!

I'm about to go watch the Colts on Monday Night Football but I wanted to do a quick update that we did close today. I'll tell you more later, but it didn't go as planned but it turned out to not be that bad. The house is beautiful, everything we ever wanted, and we realized today that we can see the Chesapeake Bay through the dining room. Woo hoo!!!!!

Thanks for all your support with this roller coaster. Hugs to you all!!

Horror Story #1

I am not a homeowner yet. We were on our way over to do the walk-through and our Realtor called and said "the dog is still here, and so are they". We drive up and it's all true. So then Pam (our realtor) calls Felecia (their realtor) and says they'll be out in 15 minutes. When that time passes we call back, and she says another 15 minutes. Mind you, we've got 30 minutes before we're due to close. So Felecia calls again and says "they've got everything out do the walk-through". We go in. These are a few of the pictures I took.

Mind you, the whole time we're there Pam is on the phone with Felecia and the homeowner (who apparently left so she could find a new place to stay...TODAY) telling them the condition, like 4 kids are in the house with the huge rottie trying to clean up a little bit but then ended up just sitting on their asses when they could hear us saying that we weren't going to accept it. Their realtor was trying to convince us to go to closing and accept the house (like I said, the seller signed yesterday) and they'd have it cleaned out by tonight. Oh yeah, like we're going to do that. Then Pam called our lawyer who says that if the seller doesn't release us from closing on the house today that we are actually in default since she already signed. Felecia said that the seller would sign the paper, but it looks like we'll close on Monday morning. I'm not surprised. I've always known this would go like this which is why I was so quiet the whole way through and then I went and jinxed myself by posting the picture last night. The house is in shambles. Shambles. Mircea took the entire weekend off work (several grand mind you) we got all the utilities switched over, and I have two days off next week. Our whole house is packed.

I need a pity party. I'll update you as I know more but I had to document this as it is simply unbelievable. How's that for robbing us of all of the joy of our first home together.

And yet part of me feels so much sympathy for them. They are basically getting kicked out of their house and didn't even have a place lined up to live. But then I don't feel bad because they always knew they couldn't afford this place and got in over their heads. It was so bad, I can't even describe. These are just a couple of the pictures I took on my phone. It was bad. Bad bad bad.

Homeowner's Eve

Tomorrow is a big day for us. We'll do the final walk-through in the morning and then head over to the title company for closing. The seller is actually doing their paperwork today so it will be interesting. We're a little concerned about the condition of the house but we'll find out at the walk-through. Hopefully they didn't make a big mistake by damaging anything because Mircea and I are completely prepared to walk away if they did any damage to the house. No worrying now though, I'll deal with it tomorrow.

So I probably won't be blogging for awhile, but when I come back I should have pictures of the house (taken by moi) and hopefully no moving horror stories. Here's the outdoor picture of the house from the listing, but don't worry, we'll make it prettier and give it a paint update (in the spring).

Wish us luck!

Movie Review: 88 Minutes

ZERO STARS!

This movie, 88 Minutes, starting Al Pacino and a host of B list celebrities, was terrible. Laughable.

Ridiculous. Stupid. Do you even want to know anymore?

The premise of this movie is that this forensic psychologist's testimony put a man in jail for a brutal rape/torture (yes, the movie opened with this and it was uncomfortable). Well, fast forward 9 years and it's the day the man is to be executed and all of a sudden another murder with the same M.O. happens. Which of course raises doubt that this man was the real killer and he gets a stay of execution. Well Al Pacino gets a phone call and says "you have 88 minutes to live" and for the next roughly 100 minutes we watch what could best be described as this guy's "worst day ever" and it's laughable, ridiculous, and corny. We only finished the movie because we had to know what happened. Let's just say it was dumb. Really really really dumb. OMG it was dumb. So the movie ends, and I turn on Monday Night Football and feel a little better. But still, it's on the list of terrible movies like Wicker Man and Twisted. Blech!

This Made ME Hoot

more animals

The Kids

Most of my friends have human children. I have fur babies, and at this point in my life, I'm happy with that, except when they are vomiting, flinging their litter around or, horror of horrors, spraying pretty much everything in sight (damned Yukie). So I wanted to share some pictures of the little cuties. They really are a joy to have in my life, despite their fur and nagging. They are all unique and I hope that when I have human children they take on some of the characteristics of these little guys. I might have already posted this photo. I don't get many of Lily because she is pretty much always doing the same napping pose and when I get close she wakes up and makes a sleepy cute face. Pretty much every picture. Mircea walked into the kitchen a couple days ago only to find Fernie up in a basket that sits on top of the cupboards. So cute. She was pretty much yelling at us while we took the picture. All the cats do this, but I happened to get this picture of Fern during her dinner where she pretty much had her head buried in her food dish. They love that Fancy Feast.Yukon getting "in" to the catnip. They were wild that night. I have a video to post later.Yukon is a Steelers fan, which can be a problem in a Colts-Eagles household, but we manage. He grew up in a Steelers house, so I thought it was only fair that he could represent. So I bought him a little hankerchief which he proudly wears on game days. So cute, with the exception of my stringy wet hair and glowing red eye scaring up the photo.He fell asleep about halfway through the game. He has his own room, which is the bathroom, and all that stimulation from the game got him going. I often have to touch him to make sure his is breathing because he is always just sort of zonking out and he really gets some deep sleep.



Hope you enjoyed the dorky photos!

Seen On the Way to Base

While I understand the theory behind this license plate (Devil Dog- Marine Corps) I think it is a bit much. I mean, come on, who puts the number of the Beast on their license plate? That's all, I just thought it was taking things a little too far.

Paint Colors

I'm trying to make some paint decisions and it is literally killing me (no, I did not mean figuratively) as I consider all the options. I have to paint every inch of the new house (in an underwhelming announcement we close next Friday-but it can still fall through, no jinxing, I am not partying until keys in hand...and the party will be awhile b/c i have a lot of work to do) and I just don't know scheme I want for the place. I know I want neutral tones for the living room and general "all house" color. So I think I've finally determined the living room color (sort of a latte-it's called "Wicker". Whatever, this is all unimportant. I need you, kind reader, to help me make a decision. I am totally married to having a green bedroom. Sort of a dill but it's called pine needle. Married to this. Except I found a beautiful blue color that I like and then I love the idea of having a slightly less blue bathroom to complement it because that would be nice and peaceful for the tub. Light green doesn't seem as soothing. Help help help. What do you think? I can't have the green bedroom with the blue bathroom, that just seems wrong. And the bedroom is the second room I have to paint as that and the living room are pretty much the only rooms that will have furniture in them because the house is such an upgrade in size. Oy.

I've got one picture I can share, and it's a horrible tease because it's the only picture I've taken of the house and it was just so I would remember what color the kitchen counter is. And although it looks gray and you'd think the Wicker theme wouldn't work, it has beige flecks in it to stay neutral. And yes, it's only the counter, but I'll post pictures (before and after) once we move in...oh how I'm counting the days. It's 10 more days...

It's That Time of Year Again

Yes, Ye Olde Renassaince Faire. I believe I mentioned last year in the aforementioned post that I hate the Renn Faire. Hate it. Robyn's husband went the first year, but last year he boycotted stating that he would "Never ever go again". I followed suit last year and said the very same thing, in a much higher voice. Alas, when Robyn asked us to go this year, I made the crucial mistake of not simply telling her "no way in hell" and asked Mircea if he would like to go. He said "oh yes" in an even higher pitched voice. Plus, we haven't seen Robyn in a long time, and Ben moved up to D.C. a couple months ago, so it is best that we spend some time with them. And then Mircea drops this little b.s. bomb on me. "Kate, I want to work next weekend so I won't be able to go to Renn Fest. But after work I'm going to go watch the Eagles game at a friend's house." Are you effing kidding me? So now I'm going to the damned Renn Fest without my stud muffin. I'm swearing, vowing, promising...NO MORE DAMNED RENN FEST.

**I wrote this the night before we went to the Renn Fest. It's just how I remembered it, but not as hot as last year, thank goodness. And, my Skinny German wasn't there, which is total b.s. since that is pretty much the only thing I was slightly interested in. Also, darned Lindsay made mention of a fried Oreo (that she'd never had either) and I was obsessed with the idea of having one. So Ben's girlfriend and I got some fried treats-some Oreo's and a Twinkie. We each took a bite from the Twinkie and it was trash-worthy, and the Oreo's only redeeming feature is that there was chocolate in it. Our verdict: Underwhelming. Don't waste the calories. I really don't want to go back again, but somehow I have a feeling I'll get drug there. Whatever. It's $12.50. Oh and lest we forget, I missed watching the Colts kick the pants off the Ravens, which is great living near Baltimore. Yeah we stole them, and then we brought them back to kick your butt!!

Cooking Catch-Up

I'm not going to pretend that everything I've made in the last few weeks looks wildly appealing. Or that my pictures are very good (I really like my old camera) . But the food was all pretty darned delicious. I'll share some of the recipes, some aren't mine to share.

I decided that I wanted to have some italian food, other than pasta with sauce. I decided that there was no reason I couldn't bread tofu, bake it, and put a little pasta sauce on it. It was awesome. In the oven the tofu sort of took on a cheesy sort of texture and flavor and it really seemed like a huge mozzarella stick. I put a little Follow Your Heart Mozzarella on it and it was just delicious. Easy peasy. I popped it in the oven at 375 for about 15 minutes, flipping halfway through. Oh man, that was so good. I had that last night.
I have no idea what this is. I think is is tofu, zucchini, squash, and maybe some tomatoes. Whatever it was, it's pretty and colorful and I guarantee tasty because if I don't like it, it goes into the compost.

This is that herb soup I posted about from Veganomicon. It was good but I had an overload of dill so it was a bit much. Those crackers in there are the Everything crackers from Trader Joe's. They are a must buy.
I have to shout out to Lindsay that she opened my eyes to the idea of a vegetable fajita. I don't like peppers. Oh wait, I never had them. I don't like green peppers, but red and yellow are really good. These were my super colorful fajitas with a lot of avocado on there. And I didn't have sliced olives, so I just threw some whole ones on there. DELICIOUS!!
From Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World. My "poop icing" version of a chocolate on chocolate cupcake. Tastes like Heaven. HEAVEN.
This is the pineapple quinoa meal from Veganomicon. I thought it was ok. I like the quinoa but this left a lot to be desired. I blame myself b/c I didn't have all the fresh ingredients, but such is life.
This last one is Rodica's (Mircea's mama) version of potato salad. It basically consists of black olives, tomatoes, green onions, cucumber, red pepper, olive oil, salt and a little vinegar. It is awesome, except I don't like cucumber or red pepper (raw) but she was here and it was her special request. Seriously, it is delicious. Plus, it's the best part of being vegan-potato salad you don't have to refridgerate. Is that really the best part? Maybe.

Friday Funny

I found a new blog that cracked me up. This is the blog of unnecessary quotations. Always a "good" time.

Enjoy!

Check Out This Little Gem

I was talking to Marc today and he asked if I had seen the website called Cake Wrecks. I hadn't, but I spent a little time this afternoon laughing my butt off at some of these cakes. Hilarious!!



Here's one that I ran across, not the funniest one, but it had Eagles on it, so it was a shoutout to my sweetie. I've also included the commentary.

You know your mom is cheap when...you have to share your own birthday cake. With a boy. (Yeah, I'm taking Ashley's side. Why? Because a) she likes Disney stuff, b) she's enduring what I'm assuming must be a sports logo on her birthday cake, and c) she's a girl. But mostly the Disney thing.)I like the unintentional irony of having Eeyore on the cake, though. A glum donkey for a glum-ass cake - it's quite appropriate. Still, I have a few questions:

1) Since the "Eagles" logo is blue, why is the icing green?

2) Can anyone see the colors green & purple together and NOT think of either Mardi Gras or the Joker?

3) How come Glen gets his name capitalized, but not Ashley?

4) Did anyone else first read this as "Happy ashley Birthday Glen"?

5) Doesn't Glen's side look bigger? Hey, I think it IS bigger. Mo-oooommm!!!

My First Curry

Last night I decided to go on a journey to India. So I put on my jammies, went into the kitchen, and pulled out my Penzey's Sweet Curry and looked around my kitchen for what I could flavor. There were really only three things I had at the ready, but my meal turned out awesome. All I did was chop up 4-5 shallots, 4 red potatoes, and a package of Trader Joe's extra firm tofu. I got a big ol' skillet and heated up a tiny bit of coconut oil and pan fried the whole lot of it (after sprinkling some curry power on). It took FOREVER because it's kind of hard to pan fry raw potatoes. It turned out awesome though and I just added a little salt when it was done. I didn't take a picture because I was so hungry yesterday, but I'll take a picture next time I do it. Any suggestions for the potatoes? Do I have to boil them first or just cut them really small?

Feeling Blessed

I am one who usually rants. I know, you're surprised at that revelation. I want to take a moment to share with my readers (all 3 of you) the things in my life that make me feel blessed.

• Wonderful friends. Some old, some new, some local, some far away, you are all so special to me and I thank you for the gift of your friendship.


• A good job. In this time of financial strain and struggle I am thankful that I have a career that affords me less worry than some others may have during the struggles of our economy.


• My wonderful pets. I am so thankful that they found their ways into my life and I consider every day with them a gift. The three of them are unique and bring me great joy...most of the time. When Yukon is lost, Lily is whining and Fernie is puking I'm annoyed, but I am thankful for their friendship as well. I love being their "Mommy".


• My family. We're not close, but we try our best with each other and I'm thankful for the relationship that we do have. I love my father very much and appreciate the sacrifices he gave for my well-being.


• My Mircea. We've had our ups and downs, but he truly is the love of my life. Our relationship has grown in our time together and I look forward to our future. And he's a cutie pie


• My health. Despite what often feels like falling apart, I am doing alright and have no terrible damage. A bum knee, a chubby rear end, terrible allergies, and allergy on-set asthma isn't going to kill me, and there seem to be solutions for all of them. Sadly, it's not donuts.

Hope you are all having a wonderful day and remembering to count your blessings. I forget a lot of the time, and I hope to remind myself more often.

I'm a Little Freaked Out

I am going to have knee surgery. I haven't scheduled it yet because 1.) I'm terrified and 2.) They call me to schedule it and I just had my appointment today. 3.) See 1.

I went to see an orthopedist today who said that the problem with my knee isn't all the jazz that can be fixed by PT (which hasn't been working) and that I was born with my knee being out of joint. He said a fair amount of people have this problem, but if they don't run or exercise they won't know it. I hope he's not just trying to snip me, but he seemed to be sure it would be easy, outpatient and should help me resume my normal activities. But I'm still terrified. And I will be awake, and I'm even allowed to watch, which I most likely will not be doing as I will definitely be vomiting on myself. I can't watch anything that resembles a surgery or opening up of a body, or...oh, I can't talk about it. Seriously, had to put the computer down and put my head between my knees for a second.

I'll probably schedule the surgery for mid November, which shouldn't interfere with some other stuff going on in my life. I need to be able to climb stairs because I will not always live in a 1 story house. (Or will I?-see not jinxing)

Ok, enough of that. On a side note I pretty much followed the receptionist all the way from her house to the orthopedist. She lives a street over from me I guess and I just noticed b/c she drove a Prius, but I was on her ass and kept making all the turns she made, and then we walked in together. I asked her how many MPGs she gets...her answer: 40. What is the point? I get at least 50, at 40 y0u could have just driven a Civic. People, you've got to learn the techniques. She should be ashamed.

As If I Don't Disclose Enough

Chantelle tagged me to particpate in this meme. Like I don't tell you random stuff all day, but in the spirit of bloggyness (it's a spirit) I'm all up for participating. (oh and chantelle, i share your number 1, big time. it's weird)

The Rules:

1. Link your tagger and list these rules on your blog.

2. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog. Some random, some weird.

3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as linking to their blogs.

4. Let them know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.



The stuff...

1. I remember so much about random people in my life that it borders on obession. I remember conversations with random people in classes, remember their names, etc. I can't remember what I did at work yesterday, but I remember the day that Beth Bringle wore the same shirt as me. WTH?

2. I am always afraid of "jinxing" something. I won't talk about the football game (Purdue/Indy) on the day of, I will always speak in hypotheticals regarding sports, raises, large purchases, etc. I will NOT relax this whole house thing until I have keys in hand. (and i won't say anymore about the house because I'm afraid of jinxing it. Seriously, I had more written here and had to delete it because I was too afraid to share)

3. I have two classics that I sing in the shower. Consistently. They are Rhythm of the Rain and Last Kiss (not pearl jam's version-well, not always). If I'm home alone in the shower I will belt these two songs out. And I remember the first time I sang them in the shower at my house in Goshen. There's number 1 coming into play. I also cry every time I hear Last Kiss on the radio, like sobbing, blubbering tears.

4. I want to have a male child. And I want to name him James. So when I sing James Taylor's Baby James it will mean more. I'm not kidding.

5. I think that I should be on a game show. I am super good at trivia and I always kick ass at Cash Cab and Jeopardy! Jeopardy being the more difficult one, but I just know random shit.

6. I use waaaay too much toilet paper. I feel bad about it too because I know it isn't environmentally friendly, but I use the awesome charmin and lots of it.

7. I want to go back to school to be a veternarian. I've looked up all the prereqs and I really want to go to school again for it. And I'm not sure why I didn't go the first time around. I think it is because my parents were telling me they weren't paying for school and I just went to college to be with my then boyfriend. Guess I got lucky because I did very well at Purdue and now I have a great job, but I didn't really follow my dreams because no one really ever instilled that "sky's the limit" mentality in me. Whatever, I can push James (the son I don't have) into following my dreams so I can live vicariously through him. That's good parenting.


I'm too lazy to tag people. If you feel like posting this, please do so. If not, you're a spoilsport.

Ha!